Fireside Cafe
by AnnaCromwell
Summary: The Fireside Cafe - a quaint place with customers to match its reputation. Follow the journey its regulars take - through life, work, love and more.
1. Welcome, Readers

**Hi guys - this is my first shot at a Phineas and Ferb fanfiction. It's a Coffee-Shop AU, so bear with me while I try to make it as good as I can. Enjoy!**

 **P.S. Thanks a ton to** Qoheleth **for pointing out the factual inaccuracy! (And no, me not being from the States isn't a good excuse).**

* * *

 **Isabella**

 ** _I could get used to this._**

Managing her mother's establishment for the summer had seemed like a Herculean task, but a few days behind the counter and she had become skilled at filling orders, cracking jokes and remembering people's regulars at once.

"Hi," Gretchen, her best friend since kindergarten trudged in on the snowy day. Danville wasn't prone to blizzards, but the freak storm affecting Idaho, Montana, and Wyoming had brought the small city to a halt.

"How is CalTech?" the former asked while making a mocha cappuccino. Gretchen's not-so surprising acceptance to CalTech (with a full scholarship) at the end of junior year of high school had caused the two to meet less. With Isabella in upstate New York studying Political Sciences and International Relations, and Gretchen in her second year for Aerospace Eng, she felt like the two had missed out on a vital portion of the other's lives.

"It's great; can't believe I'm done with half my college life." Gretchen, now comfortably seated in an armchair by the fire and _To Kill A Mockingbird_ in her hands, smiled as Isabella set the hot drink down and took a seat - there wouldn't be many customers on a snowed-in day anyways.

"That means I'll be seeing more of you soon - come visit me in Ithaca when you're done." The spectacled girl gave a grin.

"Sure - I'll invade your apartment and make sure you eat properly. Your mom tells me you've become quite the conservative eater - staying fit for the guys, huh?" Isabella gave a half-hearted glare, then sighed.

"Nah - not really. Most guys in my course are grade-A nerds with no sense of fun and an unhealthy obsession for sweater vests." Gretchen repositioned her glasses, an eyebrow raised.

"Damn, son. Most nerds in my class, are The Big Bang Theory nerds with lives they wish were more socially active."

Isabella nodded sagely. "Speaking of socially active, have you gotten a guy yet?"

"Too-"

"Too much work," she glared. "Gretchen, that's been your excuse through middle school and the two years of high school you attended."

"But Izzy, I'm two years younger than the rest, and more involved too. I want to get my internship with JPL as soon as possible. Besides, the guys are cute but too fast for my liking, and the nice ones don't want to date." She was halfway through her drink.

"Hmm... " Isabella looked off into the distance, brought back to Earth by purposefully loud slurping sounds.

"Whose world did you get lost in?"

"No one's, actually. I was just wondering if that inventor guy would stop by."

Gretchen sat up straighter. "Inventor? Should I know about this individual?"

"Phineas Flynn - he's 19, goes to MIT, and used to occasionally stop by at the cafe - he's now a regular. Says he's visiting his parents and brother for the summer." She chuckled. "He's got flaming red hair, you know, and the most adorable pointy nose. He often gets whipped cream all over it when he takes his usual long sniff of the drink."

"Izzy…." The concern and warning were evident in her tone.

She sighed. "I know, I know - you'll tell me not to go too fast like I did with Alex, and not too slow like with Levi. Truth is, I don't even know whether he's interested in me. He just comes over and makes corny jokes while he waits for his drink."

"I wanted to say - don't get too lost in Phineas Land and remember to keep the loading bay open for deliveries. But this lesson you've learnt is a good one too."

"Gretch!"

"What?"

"Why didn't you remind me before? The loading kid must've left the coffee bags in the snow!" Gretchen allowed herself a laugh as Isabella ran out of the back door, coming in twenty minutes later with beads of sweat all over her face. "Done." The rest of the time was spent in comfortable silence till the cuckoo clock chimed nine, the sun now out and melting away the snow on the sidewalk.

"Wow - it's barely been an hour and quite a lot of snow is out."

"Yeah - bet the customers would be making their way here?"

"Give them time to clear their driveways, Chief!"


	2. Along Came Two Inventors

**Here we go - another chapter of The Fireside Café. I might not be able to update anytime soon - just not keeping well nowadays. Apart from that, I have my SAT's and ACT's to give, and studies... *sigh***

 **Enjoy!**

 **\- Anna.**

 **Ferb**

 _Bored._

Ferb would've proudly denied this, but he was bored and devoid of ideas. The snowstorm seemed to have affected his and Phineas' mental workings, making Phineas susceptible to what Ferb called 'the mindless potato bug'.

Being afflicted with the mindless potato bug included endless hours of staring at the laptop/phone (take your pick), incessant lounging and a sudden urge to watch crap telly.

Why mindless potato bug?

Because the two liked to believe that the nucleus present in all cells of the potato served as its cumulative brain, and we were only consuming what was its mindless version (sans brain, sans taste, sans _everything_ ). And now they had become that - it was driving him insane.

"Ferb, I have no clue what we're going to do today."

The moment these dreaded words left Phineas, Ferb made a mental resolve to come up with a plan in the next five minutes - which he successfully did.

"Come on, get up," he dragged the former off the couch. "We're making a laser snow melting machine. The driveway and the walkways are too sticky with it."

Two hours and several curses later, the two had made a contraption that best resembled a curling iron, but shot a wide-range laser that was currently to 'snowmelt'. The settings ranged from 'pointer' (Ferb had no idea why they'd put _that_ one in - it would look simply ridiculous) to 'James Bond' (they both knew what that did, but had no clue when they'd ever need it).

"Let's do this." Phineas finally looked like his pre-mindless-potato self.

With the walkway and driveway cleared and their mother's promise of a batch of cookies each for the duo, Phineas shook their car's keys absentmindedly.

"Ferb, I know what we're going to do next." When said Brit cocked an eyebrow, Phineas rubbed his mittened hands together. "Let's go to the Fireside Cafe. That place is amazing. They have books," he decided to make sure his brother would go, "and Earl Grey."

"Must it take you so long to suggest that?"

* * *

"A P stylised in the shape of my pointy face means nothing, bro!" Ferb shook his head, opening the door for a rambling Phineas to get in. Despite the clear skies and the sun, the wind was still chilly like last night's blizzard.

"Morning, Isabella," the redhead wished as he walked off to the counter with a large grin on his face, Ferb busying himself with the mini-library the cafe housed. The collection was to his taste, with its Edgar Allan Poe, Richard Feynman, John Green, Danielle Steele, J.K. Rowling, Rick Riordan and Carl Sagans all in order.

"You should go with a Riordan today," a quiet voice interrupted his mental debate between _Blood Of Olympus_ and _Contact._ The owner of the voice was a petite brunette, her rimless glasses giving her blue eyes a sort of glaze that Ferb assumed would come with acrylic and not glass lenses. He wondered whether she was in engineering or med school.

"Engineering or med school?" Contrary to surprised, she looked pleased. Like someone was finally noticing obvious details.

"Aerospace." Ferb's mouth involuntarily twitched into a small grin. Someone else with his interests; _**finally**_.

"Same."

"Where do you go?"

"Cambridge - the UK one."

"CalTech. I'm beginning my third year."

"Same here." He looked at the books in his hands once again. "So, you were suggesting a Riordan, weren't you?" A nod, and a small smile was her answer. "Very well - as the lady says." As Phineas chattered away to Ms Garcia-Shapiro in the background, he had plenty of time to get through the first chapter without being pestered.

"Ferb, Ferb, FEEERRB!" Phineas was met by a rather unamused expression, and a quirked eyebrow, to which his response was, "Isabella wants your order."

"You know what I want."

"Earl Grey? That's it? No cookies, no brownies, no specials, _nothing else_?"

"How much sugar have you consumed, Phineas?"

"Two sachets - maybe three. The usual was a bit too strong and bitter."

"And you had Froot Loops and Honey Cheerios with chocolate milk this morning." The redhead nodded rather vigorously. With a resigned sigh, Ferb allowed himself to be dragged off to the counter - there was a new breakfast menu which looked rather appetizing.

"Chocolate-Walnut Brownies?" Isabella nodded with a grin. "Coming right up with your Earl Grey, Ferb." A knowing look passed between her and Gretchen, the latter blushing rather furiously at the formers conspicuous, knowing smile. Phineas the Innocuous looked on with his trademark lost expression, while Ferb inwardly berated his brother's blissful but rather inconvenient obliviousness.

"Here you go - Phineas, wanna sit down and grab a bite? There aren't many people around, so I could get you anything you like…" Her suggestion was lost on the boy, who accepted the offer graciously but did not get the flirtatious undertone to it, leaving Isabella disappointed, _again._

Leaving Phineas to his own devices, Ferb proceeded to sit beside the pretty bespectacled brunette, and learn more about people than of supernovae and photolytic propulsion systems.


End file.
